One Step Behind
by SweetyPie50
Summary: Nicolina Mancini and Ezio Auditore, childhood friends, inseprable, always getting into trouble together, always there for one another, always one step behind each other. EzioxOC
1. Prologue: The Beginning

**Disclaimer: As much as I desperately wished I owned Assassin's Creed-and Ezio-I don't. I just like messing around with it.**

**Well, here is my second Assassin's Creed story. This has been one that has been in my head since I started playing the game. I'm not so sure this is a very good chapter, but my friend assured me it was good, so here I am posting it. I'd also like to thank my friend for all the help she's given me.**

**One Step Behind**

Prologue:

The Beginning

Giovanni Auditore and Liborio Mancini had been good friends for a while, ever since they had both been hired to assassinate a certain person. They had been hired by the same person, someone who didn't like doing the dirty, so he just hired assassins. This person also knew that man he wanted killed was too strong for one assassin, so he hired two of the best. Those two just so happened to be Giovanni and Liborio. Together, they had killed the highly dangerous man and had been working together ever since. If you hired one of them, you hired the other.

And then, Liborio met Rosabella, the beautiful daughter of a very wealthy merchant, and fell in love. And, though her father didn't approve of him, Liborio and Rosabella were married soon after. That doesn't mean Liborio stopped being an assassin; it was all he knew how to do, sad as it sounded. Of course Rosabella knew about his job, it was impossible to hide it from his wife but she didn't make him stop, she just worried about him every time he went out. It didn't mean his friendship with Giovanni ended either; the two were still close and continued to carry out assassinations together.

And then the children started coming. A year after Liborio and Rosabella were married, they had their first child, a boy named Elpidio. Elpidio proved to be a very nurturing and caring child, taking after his mother. Two years after, the second child, another boy, came around and they named him Panfilo. Panfilo was a very shy boy, often hiding behind his mother's skirts whenever they went out. They had decided to wait for a while before having another child. So, four years after Panfilo was born, Valerio said hello to the world. Valerio was more outspoken and outgoing then his older brothers and, even from a young age, Valerio showed interest in the opposite sex.

It was during the time when Rosabella was pregnant with Valerio that Giovanni met someone, a woman named Maria. And, thanks to Liborio's constant pushing, he and Maria were married just before Valerio was born. It wasn't until three years after they were married that they had their first son, Federico, just a few months before Liborio and Rosabella had their fourth child, Basilio. Federico and Basilio were very different. Where Federico was playful, Basilio was quiet and kept to himself, yet the two seemed to get along just fine.

Now, of course Giovanni and Maria would want to have more children, but you'd think that Liborio and Rosabella were done with the kids, but Rosabella wanted one more. She wanted a girl and she'd do anything to have one. So, after another three years, both Rosabella and Maria became pregnant at the same time.

Rosabella gave birth first, to a beautiful baby girl. She and Liborio were overjoyed and named their new daughter Nicolina and from the first moment that Nicolina entered the world, she was quite restless, she even kicked in her sleep, not to mention the fact that she talked in her sleep to.

It was just two days after Nicolina was born that Maria gave birth to a boy which they named Ezio. If the two pairs of parents had known how much trouble the two would get into, they would've kept them apart.

_**OSB**_

It was they day that they celebrated Ezio and Nicolina's fifth birthdays. Since the two were born so close, they had chosen to celebrate their birthdays at the same time. Ezio and Nicolina had no complaints about sharing a birthday; they seemed to prefer it in fact.

The two had been able to sit still for a grand total of five minutes before running off. Nobody had the slightest clue where they had gone off to.

"How do two very young children just disappear?" Rosabella sighed to her husband. Liborio smiled at her, kissing her cheek.

"They're around here somewhere," he said. Rosabella smiled at him when a little voice called out to them.

"Mama Papa!" Little Nicolina ran up to her parents and latched herself onto her mother's skirt. She looked up at Rosabella with an incredibly dirty face. "I beat Ezio!" She cried.

"Did not," an equally dirty Ezio replied, standing not too far off, looking very upset.

"Did to," Nicolina shot, turning to him and placing her hands on her hips. "You got beat by a girl!" Ezio glared at her and Nicolina just smiled triumphantly at him. Rosabella sighed, crouching down and spinning her daughter around to face her.

"Nicolina, you're filthy." She said, trying to wipe the dirt of her cheeks. Nicolina pushed her hands away. "And your dress is ruined!" She exclaimed, looking at Nicolina's dress, which was dirty and torn in places. Nicolina looked down at it.

"He did it!" She said quickly, pointing to Ezio.

"Did not!" Ezio argued.

"You did so!" Nicolina argued back.

"I did not!"

"You did so! You have to fix it now." Nicolina said, her arms folded across her chest.

"What?" Ezio asked with wide eyes.

"I said fix it." Nicolina answered. "Unless you're afraid you'll cut your finger with the needle." She taunted, making Ezio narrow his eyes at her. Rosabella sighed. Nicolina always had to egg him on. Rosabella decided to step in before things got bad, which they usually did.

"I'll fix it later, Nicolina, and then we're going to have a talk about your mud wrestling." Rosabella said, grabbing her daughter's arm gently. Nicolina's brain seemed to go off after her mother said that she'd fix it. She looked at Ezio with a smirk.

"You'd do a bad job anyway," she said. Ezio glared at her and Rosabella knew that her attempt to keep things calm, had failed.

"I would not!" Ezio exclaimed.

"You would to," Nicolina replied coolly. "You don't even know how to sew."

"Neither do you," Ezio said back.

"But I will one day. Mama will teach me." Nicolina said, sticking her chin in the air proudly.

"Well, I will one day to!" Ezio insisted.

"No you won't, you're too afraid of the needle!" Nicolina pushed. Ezio glared at her and that's when the hitting started. They were lightly batting at each other, not enough to hurt one another though.

"Children, stop it!" Rosabella ordered her hands on her hips. They didn't listen to her and kept hitting each other. Liborio made a move to step in a separate them but that's when they decided to take off again.

"I'm going to beat you again!" Nicolina said.

"No your not!" Was Ezio's simple reply. Rosabella sighed.

"What are we going to do with them?" She said in exasperation.

"What can we do with them?" Liborio replied. Rosabella shot him a sideways glance, signifying that he wasn't helping. Liborio simply smiled. "We better go inform Giovanni and Maria that the two have disappeared again." He said, holding out his hand. Rosabella took it without a second thought and let him lead her.

Little did they know, this was just the beginning.

**Well, what did you think? Was it too boring? I hope not. Well, I don't have much to say except for R&R please!**


	2. Tragedy

**Disclaimer: As much as I desperately wished I owned Assassin's Creed-and Ezio-I don't. I just like messing around with it.**

**Well, here is the first chapter! This one's a little depressing though, just so you know. And thanks for your reviews for the last chapter!**

Chapter 1: 

Tragedy

"Nicolina, get off me!" A ten year old Ezio exclaimed as he struggled under her.

"No," Nicolina replied with a smug look on her face. She had all of her weight on him to keep him down, but she didn't think it would last long. None the less, she would enjoy it well she could. "You got beat by a girl again!"

"No I haven't." Ezio said as he finally threw her off. Nicolina squealed in surprise as she went down. Ezio was quick to jump on her.

"Ezio!" Nicolina screamed in protest. "Get off!"

"No," Ezio replied, mimicking her tone from earlier, only succeeding in annoying Nicolina further and she commenced in the kicking.

"Nicolina, Ezio!" A sharp voice called, making Ezio roll off Nicolina. They both looked behind them to see Rosabella looking absolutely livid. Nicolina cleared her throat, sharing a slightly nervous look with Ezio before they both stood up. Nicolina brushed off her dress before standing tall to face her mother. Rosabella stared down at her.

"Nicolina, what have I told you about this?" She demanded sharply. Nicolina bit her lip and looked down. It was no secret that her mother was getting tired of their constant wrestling. It was a habit they had never grown out of.

"I'm sorry, mother," she said quietly.

"And look at you! You're filthy!" Rosabella exclaimed. Nicolina bit her lower lip as she continued looking down. "Do you want to look like this when your brother and Nilda arrive?" Nicolina's face brightened as she looked up at her mother.

"Elpidio and Nilda are coming?" She asked. Nilda was Elpidio's wife. He had been married a year before and Nicolina adored her new sister in law. Rosabella smiled and nodded.

"I'm going to the market and when I get back, I expect you to be clean, alright?"

"Alright," Nicolina said eagerly with a fervent nod. Rosabella smiled, kissing the top of her daughter's head before looking over to Ezio.

"Oh, and Ezio," she said. "You just probably go home. I don't think your mother is particularly happy with your current activities either." Ezio cringed at the mention of his mother. It was no secret that Maria and Rosabella were less then happy about their children constantly rolling in the dirt. "I'll walk you home," Rosabella offered, walking up to him.

"Good bye Ezio!" Nicolina called, waving to him with a smile on her face.

"Good bye!" Ezio waved back before Rosabella gave him a light tap on the back.

"Come on," she said. "The sooner you get there the sooner your punishment will be over." Ezio groaned inwardly. He wasn't going to like this.

_**OSB**_

"Nicolina, where's your mother?" Liborio asked.

"She told me she was going to the market." Nicolina answered.

"How long ago was that?" Nicolina shrugged.

"A while ago," she answered. "Probably a few hours ago," Liborio sighed.

"It doesn't take that long to go to the market." He said.

"Well, she did take Ezio home first." Nicolina said.

"If that's the case, she and Maria probably talked for a while." Valerio added from where he was playing chess with Basilio, who had a very concentrated face on while Valerio looked smug.

"I don't think so," Panfilo said from where he was reading his book. "Elpidio and Nilda are coming, she would want to get home as soon as possible."

"Well then where is she?" Liborio wondered.

"I can go look for her!" Nicolina said eagerly. She didn't want for an answered before heading to the door.

"Nicolina wait!" Liborio called after her. But it was too late, she was out the door. "Someone go with her, please." Valerio sighed before running after her. He had pretty much won the game chess he was playing with his brother, might as well save Basilio the shame of being defeated again.

"Nicolina, hold on!" He called as he ran after her. She didn't stop though, she continued to weave her way through the crowd. "Nicolina," he called again as he caught up to her and grabbed her arm. "Slow down," he hissed.

"Let go," Nicolina protested, pulling her arm out of his grasp. She wasn't happy about her sixteen year old brother coming with her, she liked to do things by herself.

"Stay close." Valerio ordered, placing a hand on her back to make sure she was within arm's length. Nicolina just rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest. The two siblings walked to the market together but on the way there, Valerio caught sight of a group of girls.

"Nicolina, stay here," Valerio said before striding over to the girls.

"Valerio, we have to find mother!" Nicolina called after him, but he continued walking. Nicolina huffed in annoyance and stomped her foot. Her older brother was a pig. Nicolina began to look around, not having anything better to do. Her eyes landed on a near by alley and she just barely noticed a peculiar lump slumped against the wall. She looked back at Valerio, who was still preoccupied with the women before walking up to it.

There was a nagging voice in the back of her mind telling her to stop and turn around, but Nicolina ignored it and continued onward. As she got closer to the lump, she noticed it was a person. She couldn't identify them though, because they were laying on their front. She could tell that this person was female though, given the fact that they had long, curly hair and they were wearing a dress. Nicolina hesitated, thinking that this may not be a good idea, before letting her curiosity win her over and stepped up to the body.

She kneeled beside it, still second guessing herself, before laying her hands on it. She pulled them back up upon feeling the warm, sticky residue and in the dark alley; she could faintly see the glisten of blood on her hands. She gasped a sick feeling in her stomach. Her eyes flew back to the body. It was still, but Nicolina had to be sure. If this was someone who needed help, she couldn't just leave because she felt queasy.

She quickly rolled the person over. Their hair fell of their face as she did so, revealing the person, their eyes wide open and their face in a grimace of pain.

Nicolina screamed.

Valerio turned around suddenly at the sound of his sister's scream. He looked in the place where he had left her to find her not there. Worry settled in his gut and he cursed loudly before running in the direction of her scream. It was easy to guess where she was based on the crowed surrounding the entrance of an alley.

"Get out of my way!" He yelled, pushing through the crowd roughly.

"Stay back," a guard said as he got in his way. Valerio looked over the guard's shoulder into the alley. There was a body and his sister, curled in a ball, two guards beside her, doing nothing to help the situation. Valerio pushed past the guard in front of him, ignoring him as he tried to stop him. One of the two guards next to Nicolina stood up.

"You need to get back," he said, stepping in Valerio's way.

"That's my sister," Valerio growled, pushing past the guard and to his sister. He knelt down in front of her. Her head was bowed in her lap and she was shaking. Valerio grasped her shoulders lightly. "Nicolina," he said. He got no response from her. "Nicolina look at me!" He said, only slightly more harshly. She slowly raised her head. Her face was wet with tears and her chocolate brown eyes, which were usually so full of life, were hollow.

"_Madre_," she whispered. Valerio's brows knit together and it was then that he remembered the body that was also laying in the alley. He risked a look behind him and his eyes widened and his breath hitched.

It was his mother, laying there, no signs on life in her.

"No," he whispered.

"Do you know this person?" One of the guards asked.

"That's my mother," Valerio said in a choked voice. He refused to cry though, Valerio Mancini did not cry. Not in public at least. His thoughts wondered to the rest of his family. They didn't know that Rosabella was dead yet, and they needed to know, especially his father. "I have to tell my family," he said as he scooped Nicolina up in his arms. She wouldn't walk, she was too distraught, and Valerio knew this. Nicolina and Rosabella were very close and for Nicolina to be the one to find her, Valerio didn't think she'd ever get over it.

"I can get them," one of the guards said. Valerio didn't want to stay here, but he couldn't find it in him to argue. It was hard enough to keep the tears from spilling out.

His father, brothers and sister-in-law arrived not long after the guard left. Liborio was quick to run to the body of his wife and he broke down. Valerio had to look away. It was hard seeing his father like that. He felt a slender hand on his shoulder and looked behind him to see Nilda, her eyes on Nicolina, who was still wrapped in his protective embrace. He wouldn't let her go, he couldn't.

"Is she alright?" Nilda asked. Valerio looked down at Nicolina and shook his head.

"I don't think so," he answered. "This is all my fault." He whispered. "If I hadn't left her, I could've stopped her from coming into this damned place."

"Valerio, you can't blame yourself," Nilda said. Valerio didn't respond, he just closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. Nilda sighed, patting his shoulder before walking over to Elpidio. She laid her hand on his shoulder and turned him gently to face her. He had been crying, that was no secret. His eyes were red and puffy and his face was wet. "Oh, Elpidio," she whispered, laying a hand on his wet cheek. He drew her into his arms, desperate for her comfort. His hand was tangled in her soft brown hair and he was sobbing into the crook of her neck. Nilda was stroking his hair and softly shushing him, though she knew it would have no effect.

Panfilo and Basilio stood next to their father, both crying silently as they looked at the dead body of their mother. It was so surreal to see the woman that had raised them just laying there, not breathing, not blinking, not doing anything.

It was then that another woman passed by the alley, stopping by the entrance. She smiled, an evil and cruel smile. _What a place for mourning_, she thought as she watched the family.

Nicolina peeked over Valerio's shoulder in time to catch a glimpse of the woman before burying her face into her older brother's shoulder and sobbing some more. Usually, she'd be curious and suspicious about some strange person just watching them, but all that crossed her mind was the image of her dead mother, causing her to cry more.

**Well, what did you think? I thought it started to lag at the end. And I don't really have much to say except there is yet another poll for new stories, so go vote for the one(or two)you want and R&R!**


	3. Numb

**I am soooo sorry! I will try to update more for any of you who're still reading this. I feel so bad! I'm such a terrible author, I'll work on that, I swear. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own AC. It's just a fun place to put OCs.**

Chapter 2:

Numb

Nicolina locked herself in her room after that, refusing to speak to anyone except Valerio and even he couldn't get much out of her. Ezio had been feeling so alone for the past year and a half. Nothing anyone-not even him-seemed to do was able to get Nicolina out of her withdrawn, depressed state. Still, Ezio got Federico to walk him over to the Mancini household everyday, hoping for some change in his best friend, but there was never any. She didn't even peek out the window when he came around. It saddened him greatly.

One day, when Liborio Mancini had come over to speak with his parents, Ezio had taken it upon himself to eavesdrop.

Liborio sighed heavily, seating himself on the nearest chair as he buried his head in his hands.

"How have you been, my friend?" Giovanni asked, sitting opposite him.

"Not well," Liborio answered. "Things have gotten to be so hard since Rosabella died. It's made all the more difficult with Nicolina's reclusiveness."

"You mean she still hasn't left her room yet?" Maria asked, concern and worry evident in her voice. Liborio nodded slowly. Ezio frowned from his place next to the door.

"We're sending her with Elpidio and Nilda when they go to the family villa this summer." Liborio said. "Maybe a change of scenery will fix her right up."

"Hopefully," Maria said. "Ezio's been so lonely without her."

"Believe me, Nicolina's missed him to." Liborio said. That seemed to brighten young Ezio's spirits. "Her mother's death still haunts her though and she finds it safe in her room." There was silence for a few moments.

"Well, we can only hope for the best." Giovanni said finally. Liborio nodded slowly in agreement.

"I have been for the longest time now. It doesn't seem to be making a difference." He muttered, standing up. "But I keep trying. Thank you for this," he said, referring to the talk they had just had. "But I must be off now." Ezio was quick to scramble away from the door and scurry around the corner before Liborio walked out. Ezio watched as the man sighed heavily before walking off, leaving Ezio slumping against the wall, thinking of his dear friend.

It was just before Nicolina was set to leave with her brother and his wife when Ezio yet again got his older brother to walk him over to her palazzo. When he dared a look up at her window, his heart lifted and a smile spread across his face. She was there, staring down at him though her face was emotionless. There was no sign of happiness upon seeing him.

Ezio smiled widely as he waved up to her, beckoning her down. Nicolina sighed, her heart dropping as she turned away. She couldn't go out there, not yet. The memory of her mother dead was still too fresh.

Ezio frowned when she did. Why wouldn't she come out?

"Come on, Ezio, she's not coming out," Federico said, continuing on. Ezio frowned after him before looking back up at the empty window. He sighed before following his brother.

Nicolina had been away for months. Those months had been very, very lonely for Ezio and everyday he asked if his friend had returned yet. Everyday it was the same answer. The days seemed to drag on and on, until finally, his mother had invited the Mancinis over dinner. Ezio wasn't looking forward to it. He didn't expect Nicolina to be there so he wasn't as excited as he might've been.

He huffed as his mother fussed over his hair.

"Smile, Ezio," his mother said, tapping his chin. Ezio only huffed again. The Mancinis arrived then. Liborio walked in first, followed by the somber, quiet Panfilo. Valerio and Basilio came brawling in afterwards. Overall, the family seemed to have moved on quite nicely. You probably couldn't tell that they had undergone a great tragedy. Then, to Ezio's surprise, Nicolina ran in and bowled him over. He blinked a couple of times before meeting her bright brown eyes.

"You lose," she giggled before scrambling off him and running away.

"Not fair," Ezio called, getting up and running after her.

"She seems to be doing much better," Giovanni smiled, side-stepping the children. Liborio smiled widely and nodded. 

"She was like that when she returned." He said. "Elpidio said that something about being away from the city helped her. He said he apologizes for not coming. He and Nilda wanted to stay home with their daughter." It hadn't been long before they left for the family villa that Elpidio and Nilda had started their family with a daughter. Mariella, they had named her and she might've had a part in Nicolina's coming back.

"I imagine they must be tired," Giovanni said. "Come, let us eat."

Overjoyed at being back together, Nicolina and Ezio had returned to their rough-housing, despite their parents scolding. They had almost two years to make up for! Though, as they reached the age of thirteen and were coming up on the age of fourteen, they had matured, though the continued to spend every moment they could together. That was also around the age that Ezio started to notice more girls other then Nicolina, and he didn't see them in the way he saw her. Nicolina really didn't like the attention he gave the those girls yet she always captured his attention with the suggestion of a race or something along those lines. There was also those times when Nicolina thought back to her mother's death and felt sad, though not as sad as she had been when it first happened. She had Ezio's full and undivided attention.

It was only a few weeks after their fourteenth birthdays that Nicolina and her brothers got quite the surprise from their father.

Elpidio, Nilda and baby Mariella had come over for whatever announcement their father wanted to make, yet he hadn't arrived himself, so they took to occupying themselves, mostly by watching Nicolina play a chess game against Basilio. Valerio was standing behind her, helping her win and it was frustrating Basilio to no end.

"Valerio, let her play for herself," Basilio said. "She won't learn if you help her cheat."

"She won't learn if no one teaches her in the first place," Valerio said. Basilio glared at him.

"It's just a game, Basilio," Nilda chuckled. "There's nothing at a stake here."

"Just your pride," Nicolina smirked, which only frustrated Basilio further. That's when Liborio walked through the door.

"Father!" Nicolina said, standing up and running over to him. She stopped when she saw the woman next to him. She was beautiful with an exotic face, long flowing black hair and almond shaped, deep green eyes and Nicolina was sure she'd seen this woman somewhere before.

"Nicolina," Liborio smiled. "I would like you to meet Nerezza. We are to be married."

**Well, how was it? I don't really like it that much but it will get better! I swear! I will aim for next week for the next chapter! **

**And my poll is still up, if you want to vote? Maybe? **

**Still R&R though! And yell at me as much as you feel is nesscary.**


	4. Moving On

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Assassin's Creed series, or Ezio, sadly.**

**I've really got to get better on my updating, I'm so sorry guys! But, I've held off on putting much more work on my plate, so I'll be able to update at least three of my stories regularly. And then, Assassin's Creed 3'll come out and there'll be more stories from that, so we'll see how that goes. **

**Anyways, here, at long last, is the fourth chapter to One Step Behind. It's short, but I think it's cute, so enjoy!**

Chapter 4:

Moving On

"Giovanni, my friend, is Nicolina here?" Liborio asked late that night, standing in the doorway of the Auditore's house. Worry was plastered on his face. After he had introduced Nerezza as his future wife, she had ran out of the house and he had expected no better response from her. He had just hoped she'd ran to the comfort of her best friend.

"No, Liborio, she was here earlier looking for Ezio but I told her he was out," Giovanni answered. "He returned without her though. She seemed upset, have you told her about Nerezza?" Liborio nodded, running a hand through his hair.

"I have to go look for her," Liborio said, about to turn around and head home to gather his boys before starting his search for his daughter. Just as he was about to walk away, Ezio, who had been listening as he always was, walked out ahead of the grown man.

"I'll find her," he said, knowing the state she must be in. Though she had gotten better, she'd never really let go of her mother. Finding out her father would be marrying another woman would've really hurt her and Ezio knew exactly where she would go.

It was a warm, quiet night as Ezio walked through the city of Florence to the cemetery just beyond the city. He knew that's where she would be, at her mother's grave. By the time he got there, it was only the moonlight illuminating the otherwise dark graveyard and the sounds of sobbing echoed throughout it. Ezio frowned as he followed it. Then, he found her, kneeling in front of her mother's grave as she sobbed.

"Nicolina," he whispered, crouching behind her and touching her shoulder gently. She surprised him by flinging around and punching him in the chest. She didn't put much strength into it, so it hardly hurt, she just wanted to hit something and he was the only one there.

"Where the hell were you?" She cried. "I was looking for you and I couldn't find you."

"I'm here now," he said. She let out one more sob as she wrapped her arms around his neck and sobbed into his chest.

"He's marrying another woman, he's replacing my mother," she managed through her sobs, hiccupping a little. "How could he do that? Did he not love her?" Ezio frowned. He didn't have the faintest idea of what he could say to her. He didn't have to go through any of the things she was.

"I'm sure he did, but people move on sometimes," he said.

"That doesn't mean you marry someone else!" Nicolina said. Ezio sighed, realizing that it didn't matter what he said. She would always find something to argue, so he just in the grass, hugging her as she cried.

He didn't know how long it had been, but she had eventually calmed down and fallen asleep. He had picked her up and was going to carry her home but he saw Liborio walking towards them, obviously not having given up the hunt for his daughter.

"Thank you Ezio," Liborio said, gently taking his daughter from the teenage boy's arms in hopes to keep her asleep. She'd be infuriated at him if she were awake. He wanted to hold off her wrath as long as he could. "I've got her from here, you should head home. Your parents are waiting for you." Ezio nodded, giving one last look to Nicolina before turning to walk out of the graveyard.

"Ezio," Liborio called, making Ezio stop one more time. "Really, thank you. I appreciate that there's always someone she can talk to." Ezio felt the corners of his mouth turning up into a smile as he nodded. "Now go, before you get into trouble for staying out too late." Ezio let out a groan as he turned and ran towards home, hoping to hold off some of his mother's wrath. Maybe he'd get some slack for helping a friend.

**Well? Did you like it? Yeah, it was short, but there wasn't much else I could think to write for it and I still thought it was cute. What Liborio said to Ezio is something I've wanted to fit into the story since I started, so I'm glad I got it in.**

**Not much else to say but R&R! And feel free to yell at me for not updating. I'm a very bad author, I know.**


	5. Two Years Later

**Disclaimer: You should all know by now that I don't nor will I ever own Assassin's Creed.**

**Well, here's the next chapter. I'm kinda fond of this one. You get to see the Mancini family dynamic and I like that. I love that Nicolina has four overprotective older brothers and an adoring father. Well, I hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 5:

Two Years After

After Liborio had taken Nicolina home, he had to explain to her that he still loved her mother, but he loved Nerezza too and Rosabella would've wanted him to move on. Nicolina had replied that she would put up with it for her father, but she would never love that woman and she never did. Nicolina and Nerezza did not get along. They were constantly at each other's throats and Nicolina had stopped wearing dresses all together. Now, it wasn't because she hated dresses, far from it actually. She did like dresses but now she didn't wear them just to get under Nerezza's skin. Though, now that her brothers and father were teaching her sword play and the tricks to climbing and running along the buildings, she found that dresses were just inconvenient and saved them for special occasions. The icing on the cake was that it was something that infuriated Nerezza.

One afternoon, Nicolina was practicing her swordplay with Elpidio. He and Valerio were the best at it, along with their father. She was losing, but she was still just learning. Though, all of her brothers and her father had expressed their pride at her improvement. She was a willing student and always ready to learn. They were all watching, along with Nerezza. Nilda was not far off, entertaining the very young Mariella.

Sweat beaded on her forehead as she fended off her brother's attacks. She was starting to get frustrated. She was very competitive and hated to lose, though she should probably be used to it by now. She grit her teeth and charged at him with cry. He side stepped her easily and when she came at him again, he managed to disarm her, her weapon landing at his feet. She blinked trying to piece together what had happened.

"Never attack like that, Nicolina," Elpidio advised, picking up her sword. "Always think before you do. Attacking from anger and frustration don't allow you to think clearly." Nicolina huffed with a nod as she accepted her sword back from Elpidio.

"Must she really learn swordplay?" Nerezza asked in exasperation from not far off and Nicolina narrowed her eyes. "She is a lady. You should think about getting her married off, Liborio." Liborio and his sons all shared a look with Nicolina glared daggers at Nerezza. Then, the boys started laughing.

"Nicolina? Married?" Valerio laughed. "For all the time you've spent with us, you don't know Nicolina very well." Basilio nodded in agreement.

"Ci, Nicolina would be miserable in an arranged marriage. Well, in any marriage really," he said.

"Not in any marriage," Nicolina argued. "I'd be perfectly happy in a marriage with someone to spar with, someone who didn't control me and knew I needed my space to do as I pleased."

"Sounds like someone we know," the quiet Panfilo said with a small smile.

"Maybe a certain Auditore," Valerio agreed with a smirk. Nicolina felt her cheeks burn up as she looked away.

"No, he's my friend," she said, trying to keep her composure. "He's like the brother I didn't get." She shot a look to all of her older brothers.

"You don't get jealous when you see us with other women," Elpidio pointed out with a smirk. Nicolina opened her mouth to reply but found nothing came to her. Instead, she just groaned, throwing down her blade and stomping away.

"Men," Nilda huffed, handing Mariella to her father as she followed Nicolina, leaving the men staring after her in confusion. Nilda found Nicolina sitting alone on a bench, picking at some dirt on her pants.

"Nicolina? Are you alright?" Nilda asked, coming over and sitting next to her.

"They're infuriating, all of them," Nicolina huffed in frustration. Nilda chuckled, sitting beside her.

"I know, but they're men," she said. "A young girl's mind is lost on them. Is there anything you would like to talk about?"

"No," Nicolina said, holding her head up.

"Nicolina, you don't have to lie to me, I won't tell a soul," Nilda said. "Do you have any feelings for Ezio?" Nicolina bit her lip, thinking.

"I-I don't know, I think so," Nicolina said. "I can't help but smile when he's around and when I see him around other girls, I get so jealous." Nilda smiled.

"That's what I felt for your brother when I met him," she said.

"You did?" Nicolina asked, looking up at the older woman. Nilda nodded. "What did you do?"

"Well, I got tired of waiting for him to say something so I did," she said. "I went right up to him and told him how I felt and now look at us."

"Are you saying that's what I should with Ezio?" Nicolina asked.

"Why not?" Nilda asked. "I'm sure Ezio would appreciate someone bold."

"But he's my best friend," Nicolina said. "What if my being bold ruins that?"

"You won't know unless you try," Nilda said. "I've never known you to be afraid, Nicolina. Why is this so different?" Nicolina was quiet, mulling over what Nilda had said before she nodded.

"You're right," she said, standing up. "There's nothing to be afraid of. I'm going to find him and tell him how I feel." Nilda smiled.

"Then go, before someone else catches him." Nicolina nodded, taking off. She was headed for his palazzo, she figured that was as good a place to start as any. Her heart was racing as she weaved through people, ignoring their shouts. Her mind was running through what she would say when she heard his voice over the crowd. She stopped and took a moment to calm her nerves as best she could before turning to him and stopping dead.

He was talking to Cristina Vespucci and from what Nicolina could see, he was very much enjoying her company. Nicolina felt like she had been crushed. There was no way she could compete with Cristina. She bit her lip, turning away and running home, now realizing why she had be afraid to tell him how she felt. She knew he wouldn't want her if she tried now, now that Cristina was in the picture.

The sun was setting and Nicolina was sitting on the roof of the palazzo, ignoring all the calls Nerezza had made for her to get down. She was still feeling upset about what had happened that afternoon and didn't feel like facing her brothers.

"Valerio said you were up here," a voice said from beside her. She looked over to see Ezio climbing up beside her.

"Ezio, should you not be at home?" Nicolina asked. Ezio shrugged as he sat beside her.

"I hadn't seen you all day," he said. "It was strange. You're usually causing a trouble of some kind."

"Well, I don't do it alone," Nicolina shot.

"Alright, alright, fine," Ezio chuckled. "Is everything alright?" Nicolina bit her lip, looking to the sun setting over the buildings. She could tell him the truth about what was really wrong and listen to him tell her about how much he loved Cristina and she was nothing more than his friend or she could feed him some story.

"Nerezza's trying to convince me to consider marriage," Nicolina said with a roll of her eyes and Ezio started laughing. "Oh? So you think it's funny to?"

"It's just hard to see you getting married," Ezio said. "We both know you wouldn't be happy just being someone's wife."

"You're right," Nicolina said, leaning back on her hands. "I want adventure, more adventure then being a house wife could offer."

"Well, you could get married to Vieri, I'm sure that's an adventure all on its own," Ezio joked and Nicolina shot him a glare.

"That's not funny, Ezio. I'd sooner die then marry that _stronzo_." Nicolina said with a shudder.

"You and all of the woman of Italia," Ezio chuckled and Nicolina laughed a little.

"I do want to be a mother though, like mine," Nicolina said, reaching up to play the green pendant around her neck. It used to be her mother's but her father had given it to her on her fifteenth birthday, claiming it's what her mother would've wanted. "I miss her." Ezio smiled a little, taking her hand and squeezing it in a friendly, comforting way. He'd never know what that did to her. Nicolina put on a smile as she stood. "Come on, I'll race you." She grinned.

"Where?" Ezio asked as he stood up.

"I guess you'll just have to keep up and see," Nicolina smirked as she took off. Ezio smiled as he ran after her, quickly running ahead. Nicolina grit her teeth as she kept up right behind him. He may never have feelings for her, but they would always be best friends and Nicolina was willing to keep it like that, if that was the only way she could have him.

**Well, the romance has started to be introduced! I like their friendship a lot to though, so we'll see how this develops. Anyways, I'm curious about something. I put a poll on my page to see who's the favorite of Nicolina's older brothers so go and vote and by the end of the next week or two, we'll see who wins! So go vote! I really wanna know!**

**And don't forget to R&R! Reading your guys' reviews really makes me smile and makes me feel good that people enjoy the things I write.**


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